Advanced English Vocabulary: Compound Adjectives

This is a mind-altering lesson that will change the way you look at how adjectives are constructed. Only hard-working English students should dare enter. If you’re ready to play with language and get creative, click the play button and learn some of the most advanced and complex vocabulary there is. This lesson covers more than twenty multi-word adjectives, including fun-loving, good-looking, well-developed, full-time, foul-smelling, blonde-haired, three-legged, two-liter, and plenty more. Enter if you dare, and make sure to test your new knowledge by completing the quiz at when you’re done.

Next, watch these other advanced English lessons I've done:

1. Advanced English Homophones:

2. Cause & Effect Power Verbs:

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TRANSCRIPT

Hey, everyone. I'm Alex. Thanks for clicking, and welcome to this lesson on multi-word adjectives. So, this is an advanced lesson, where I will give you a ton of examples of multi-word adjectives and the contexts in which you can use them, as well as the structure... the grammatical structure, the grammatical pieces and parts of speech you need to form your own, you know, multi-word adjectives.

Now, what's tricky about these is that you can't just take any words and mash them together. Unfortunately, you know, some words have gone together better than others. So, it is kind of an issue of memorizing things, but you can try to get creative. And after you watch the video, if you know any other multi-word adjectives or if you want to experiment with the language and try to create your own, you can ask me in the comments or write me in the comments, and let me know if you, you know, want to ask me if it's a multi-word adjective that exists or maybe it's something that's just fun and funny. So, if you can make me laugh, that's even better. All right, so let's begin.

What is a "multi-word adjective"? I think it's best if we just start looking at them and look at the examples, and you'll see what I mean. So, the first way... I say first, but really any of these could be first. The first way I have listed on the board is you can have an adverb, add an "ed" participle or an "ed" adjective to create a new word; a new adjective. So, for example, you can create words, like: "well-developed", "fully-trained", "highly-skilled". Okay? So, a well-developed app or a well-developed program.

So, remember: Adjectives are words which describe things. So, ideally, after these adjectives you should have some kind of noun. So, what are some things that could be well-developed? So, a well-developed app, a well-developed game, a well-developed program. Okay? "Fully-trained", so a fully-trained marine, a fully-trained police officer; someone who has received full training and is an expert in their field. Okay? "Highly-skilled" - someone who has a high degree of skill in their area. So, you can be a highly-skilled detective, or a highly-skilled doctor, a highly-skilled surgeon, a highly-skilled... Whatever profession you can think of that requires a high degree of skill.

Next, you can take an adverb, add an "ing" participle or "ing" adjective. And you have words, like: "hard-working", "fast-acting", "well-paying". So, a hard-working person, a fast-acting pain reliever or a fast-acting medication. So, if you have pain and you take medicine, and the medicine acts very quickly... Maybe in two minutes: "Oh, it works." It's a fast-acting medication. Okay? "Well-paying", so you can have a well-paying job; the company pays you well; the job is well-paying. You can also... Hey, you can also use "well-paid". So, if the company pays you, you can say, you know: "I am well-paid for my work. I have a well-paying job." Okay?

Next: You can have a noun plus "ed" participle. You notice the pattern, right? You see: "ed", "ing", "ed", "ing", "ed", "ing", "ed", "noun"... That's later. So, a noun plus "ed" participle. For example: "money-related", "self-created", "steel-enforced". So, if you can... If you say, for example, you know: "The country is experiencing some financial problems. They are having some money-related issues." Or maybe a city is having some crime-related problems. Or: "Hmm, this is an age-related issue" - an issue related to age or a problem related to money; something like that.

"Self-created", so, you know, all your problems are self-created. So, if you create problems for yourself, you are, you know, self-creating problems, so your problems are self-created. "Steel-enforced", so maybe this is at a prison that has very heavy security, and the walls are enforced with steel, so, you know, you cannot really break through them because they are enforced with steel. […]

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